More curious than examples like Baudelaire’s, who found his aesthetic theory essay already described and practiced elsewhere, is to come across authors, coeval or not, who are similar in content and form, although they are unknown to each other. There are many examples of this, and they attest to the fact that authentic literary manifestation is more of an instinctive impulse, more associated with the particularities of experience than with proper literary study.
Poetry Is Not Enough on Its Own
Poetry, as Guyau suggests, is not enough on its own and, if it is great, it is the form that creates an even greater motivation. This is why, in short, the value of art is tied to the value of artistic motivation. The choice of poetic form is the desire to record in the most difficult and superior of literary forms what is sincerely and violently manifested in the innermost being: it is, in short, the appreciation of this singular manifestation.
The Classic, Most Frequent and Most Shared Drama…
The classic, most frequent and most shared drama among writers is the desperate longing for freedom, which is hindered by the impossibility of achieving it through writing. That is to say: the awareness of the sense of mission, the burning desire to achieve it, but the natural and characteristic obstacle of the profession, which can only be exercised with complete dedication with a lot of luck or hard work. There is no escaping this fate, but perhaps thanks to it, writing still endures today as an authentic vocation.
This Instinctive Repulsion…
This instinctive repulsion, this irrational dislike of something or someone, often proves to be more reasonable than the most meticulous reasoning. It is very curious to have this manifestation, perhaps motivated by the most atavistic survival instinct, which generates a warning about what there is no reason to be suspicious of. And then, over and over again, follow it to later relieve the mistake not made—and be impressed by this mysterious ability…